Then we were moving too.
Sway was closer, so he rushed to Raff, grabbing him, and half-dragging him to the car.
I ran around the hood, dropping into the driver’s seat and reaching across to slam the passenger door as Sway and Raff fell into the backseat.
There was no waiting for everyone to get in their seats, to strap into their seatbelts. I threw the car into reverse and peeled down the dirt road, then turned in the direction we’d approached from.
My foot didn’t ease off the gas until we were three streets away.
My mind didn’t work until then, either.
“How is he?” I asked, glancing into the rearview to catch Sway’s gaze.
He looked rough.
Half his face was starting to bruise. His left eye was nearly swollen shut. Blood trickled half-heartedly from his nose.
But his gaze was clear, focused, likely running on adrenaline still and not feeling the pain.
“It’s not as deep as I was worried it might be,” Sway said. “But it’s nasty.”
“It’ll make a nice scar,” Raff said. “Chicks love scars. Speaking of chicks, just drop me off outside of Lulu’s place. I think she’s been dying for a chance to play nursemaid for me.”
Raff had a notorious one-sided crush on Detroit’s cousin Lulu since I’d met him. Before, even.
Lulu worked for the Italian mob in town, cooking their books so no one could ever find the dirty money they washed through their legit business—the local pub called The Bog.
“Pretty sure she’d tell us to get your ass out of her place before you bled all over her fancy carpet,” Sway teased.
“Can we get back to Shady Valley?” I asked.
Because any hospital on the way from here to there would have to report it. And none of us wanted to answer questions.
But back in our town, we had a doctor who just… didn’t ask questions. If it was safe to risk it, it was our best bet.
“It was bleeding like a fucking sieve for a while there,” Sway said. “But the pressure is working. If we can keep it from bleeding and he’s not showing any signs of shock, I think we can risk it. But maybe don’t be granny-tapping the gas.”
It had been about a four-hour drive from Shady Valley to the meeting spot.
But it was late at night.
Not many cars were on the roads.
And the truckers who were, once we hit the main drags, didn’t give a fuck if we were flying past them.
“Hey, yo, boss man,” Raff’s voice drifted to me, shaking me out of the stupor I’d been in while I focused on the road, making sure there were no speed traps set up anywhere, any cops taking a nap or dinner break off to the side of the road. “Well, here’s the thing,” he went on.
He sounded a little winded.
Was that just the pain?
Or were signs of shock setting in?
I couldn’t see him from my position, and I didn’t want to worry him by asking Sway if he was pale or sweaty.
“Well, shit went sideways. Long story short, we got the guns, but not the money. And you might want to make sure Doc Price is awake and available.”
I couldn’t make out what Slash was saying, but could hear the deep rumble of his voice coming from the phone.
